Poltergeist III (1988)

POLTERGEIST III is the main focus here and I'll tell you why......
I hate it when movie companys decide to combine two movies of the same series into one DVD. Sure, your getting more for your buck but I consider it to be a cheap excuse to sell the movie (especially if the film wasn't popular at the box office) weather the fans asked for it or not.

That happens to be the situation here with POLTERGEIST, which is basically part II and part III slapped into one disc. Now, I know the title of my review is all about the third sequel but I don't want people getting the wrong impression about my opinion. I love the second movie and I happen to think it's even better than the third film. Actually, I think all the POLTERGEIST movies are best from start to finish. The first being the best (not to mention one of my favorite Horror films of all time), the third being the last.

With that being said, lets talk about the actual movie POLTERGEIST III now. A while ago, I decided to buy the entire POLTERGEIST series on VHS because they were so cheap on Amazon's Market place. The other day I watched the third movie to refresh my memory about the film. When I was younger, I thought the third movie was pretty creepy so I had high expectations for the film to hold some of that spooky "magic" from my childhood. What started out as a pretty good follow up to the second movie was quickly dashed with a terrible ending. When the movie was over, I couldn't help but feel dissapointed and a little bit mad. Like I said, the movie starts out great and then near the end, falls flat on it's face.

Now, at the time I had no idea about the production or any of the "drama" that was happening behind the scenes of POLTERGEIST III. I heard when I was younger that the main actress (Heather O'Rourke) died at an early age after this film was made. Thinking nothing of it (at the time), I had no idea how much her death effected the over all production and direction of the film POLTERGEIST III. I did a little reading about the third sequel online and came into alot of information about the actual film and what happend in the last few weeks of production. As it turns out, Heather O'Rourke died before the actual film was finished. Nobody it seemed wanted to finish the movie (due to her sudden death) and from what I read online, the movie was going to be scrapped until the producers could remake the entire film. The movie company MGM basically told the film producers and directors to finish the movie, dispite the fact they had little to work with. Before Heather O'Rourke died, the movie already was finished (with a complete ending) but MGM didn't like the original ending and wanted them to change it. O'Rourke passed away and the producers/directors were left with a pretty much black & white choice to finish the movie or have someone else step in to do it. The end result is a quickly thrown together ending that not only feels "sudden" but cheats the viewers out of actually seeing Heather O'Rourke's face in the final scene. If you actually own this movie (considering the terrible reviews on Amazon and online, I couldn't see anybody wanting to own this movie), watch the last scene where the entire family walks out of the mirror. Carol Anne's face is buried in her Aunt's shoulder (hugging) and you never actually get to see O'Rourke's face.

From what I read online, MGM decided on a quicker ending and used a "body double" for the role of Carol Anne at the end of the film. Coming into this information online helps explain why the second half of POLTERGEIST III is lame compared to the enjoyable start of the film. Online, I read how the original ending was ment to happen and I personally think it would have finished the film alot better than the actual end result. (If your curious as to how the original ending was ment to be, I suggest going to Yahoo and looking up the title POLTERGEIST III)

Now that I have come across that information, it helps shed a different light on the third POLTERGEIST project and makes some of the bad parts (the chopped up ending, the wooden acting) a little more understandable.

Now, we've talked an awful lot about the actual direction, production and situations behind the scenes of POLTERGEIST III. I think it's time we talk about the actual plot of the movie. From what I gather, POLTERGEIST III was ment to be the final movie of the series. It was also ment to include "THE FINAL CHAPTER" in the main title. Basically the movie is about how Carol Anne is sent to live with her Aunt because her family believes she was the main source for all the "evil" that followed them. Personally I think that was a cheap excuse for a sequel idea and the film makers should have come up with a better idea than that one! If anyone has ever seen the two movies before this one, they would know that Carol Anne's family would never do such a random and stupid thing! They loved her and after everything that has happend to them, I don't think they would want to part with Carol Anne. It doesn't make sense and it makes the over all film of POLTERGEIST III feel totally different from the first two movies.

Anyways, Carol Anne lives with her Aunt and Uncle at very large apartment building in New York. Fastforward some pointless plot details (Carol Anne see's a Psychologist during the day and he doesn't believe a word about her being haunted in the past, blah, blah, blah!) and eventually the evil ghosts have found her in New York. The idea that Carol Anne must lead this "monster" Kain into the light (because she was the first born in the house that was built above the graves in the first movie) is a hold over plot from the second film. So now the entire apartment building is haunted by these ghosts and alot of creepy scenes are done with mirrors! When I was a young kid watching this movie (my opinions about plot weren't the focus of my attention) alot of the mirror scenes scared me to death! Of course these are all done with camera tricks but they're done with a brooding sense that something horrible is about to happen. Thus, the haunting of an entire apartment building! Looking back at the movie, the director doesn't explore that idea nearly enough. Most of the movie makes the viewer feel like the cast is limited, you hardly ever see anyone else in the apartment building besides the main cast and I can't help but think the "extras" were limited due to a small production fund. Lucky enough the main actors do a good job to keep you interested. They're far from bad actors.

So the movie starts out with some good spooky scenes of mirrors and interesting special effects that seem like something out of a NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET movie. Carol Anne is eventually sucked into "the other side" and the rest of the film is about her Aunt and Uncle trying to find her using some random crest (or whatever) that Tangina gave them to help find Carol Anne. Oh', did I forget to mention that Tangina is in this movie too? Well, she might as we not be considering her role is next to nothing in this sequel. It's yet another luke warm reason to have a member from the original cast put into this messy third chapter. Tangina travels to Carol Anne after getting "visions" (this part is a little unclear not to mention stupid) that Kain has found her again. That part of the movie kinda' makes me mad because it seems so pointless and is yet another thing that makes POLTERGEIST III feel unlike the other two films. Why Tangina decides to travel alone (without Carol Anne's parents) is beyond me. Don't you think they would like to know Carol Anne is in trouble again? After all, they are her parents! I guess thats a plot detail the film makers decided wasn't important enough to flesh out for the fans of the other two films.

So the rest of the movie is about the Aunt and Uncle running around this apartment building, trying to find Carol Anne. By this point in the film, most of the true "scares" are lost due to many of the reasons I listed above. There is an interesting part in a meat locker where the dead animals come to life and some pretty good special effects where Kain's head is chopped off and melts on the floor but thats about it. Everything else feels so rushed, so chopped up, that everything you just watched will be forgotten due to the terrible ending. What could have been a good sequel is bogged down by the tragic death of Heather O'Rourke, low budget (hopefully you don't expect to feel the same magic of the first movie or the wonderful special effects) and a terrible script forced into an ending rewrite.

Normally I tell my readers (the Gore Hounds) to check out a movie if I think they will find some enjoyment in the gore. Sadly, POLTERGEIST III lacks any real good latex or bloody special effects. The movie starts out well enough with some good spooky scenes with mirrors and then is quickly ruined by the rushed ending. The only people who might find this movie enjoyable are fans of the first two and those who are curious as to what happens after the second film. On a personal note, I think it's terrible that Heather O'Rourke died at such a young age. She graced our world long enough to make three POLTERGEIST movies and dispite my negative feelings twords the third sequel, I think all three of them are needed for anyones Horror collection. For those of you who enjoy large Horror movie collections, I suggest buying this movie set because it comes with the classic POLTERGEIST 2 and the third sequel to boot. Learn and understand the situation behind the third movie before watching it and give it some credit for trying. By no means is POLTERGEIST III the worst movie I've ever seen. It's a film that was ruined by "too many fingers in the pot" if you ask me. If only MGM would have left in the original ending, the movie may have felt a little bit better as a whole. Instead we're left with a messy project called POLTERGEIST III and alot of questions in the end. Gore hounds, skip this one. Horror fans, add it to your ever growing collection and understand the film before you judge it harshly. I've said my two cents, R.I.P Heather.

Portergeist
Very good story, it is sad that this little actress Heather died during one of these movies.

2 in 1 is cool
The convenience of having the last two movies in one DVD is great, and that alone earns the three stars. As for the movies. . . . .
Poltergeist II is a decent follow-up attempt, but let's face it--it's hard to beat the first and original Poltergeist. Kudos for Jillian Beck's truly spooky portrayal of the preacher, it makes the film actually scary, in what's an otherwise gross-out FX flick. Adding anything else will ruin the plot for those who've never seen the movie, so let's move on to Poltergeist III. DON'T bother. The only reason to see this movie is to see the original stars Zelda Rubinstein and Heather O'Rourke (in her last performance--she passed away before completion of the film, and that explains the crappy ending) try to salvage a pathetic franchise going down that tunnel "into the light." Amen--rest in peace Poltergeist Legacy, but this trio deserved a better send-off.